What Did You Expect?

Rating: 9/10 (26 July 2013)

I notice a lot of people pointing out the many flaws of this movie, of which there are, indeed many. But honestly, what did you expect going into the theatre? I sat down next to people who were discussing Gundam, Godzilla, anime etc. I myself had very few requirements of this movie for it to be good. I wanted to see giant robots fight giant monsters in a very large city. You know what I got? I got giant robots fighting giant monsters in a very large city. Surprise, surprise
In the meantime I enjoyed seeing an homage to the classic genre of, what, giant things fighting each other, which I wanted. I grew up watching black and white VHS tapes of Godzilla vs fill in the blank so maybe I enjoyed it a little more than the average person and it had been quite some time since I'd seen something like that. Cloverfield was a unique take on it but it lacked the epicness of two titans facing off. This is quite possibly the most epic of the giant monster genre since it has them in abundance.
What it boils down to is just that, expectation. I did NOT expect the acting to be quality and it wasn't. I did NOT expect the storyline to be interesting and maybe I had a little too low of expectation for that because it reached a point where even that became a little interesting as the movie drew me further and further in. My single regret is that I didn't see it on a bigger screen and didn't see it in 3D. I would pay to see it again just for that experience. I've always had an appreciation for epicness and it doesn't get much more epic than trying to protect the last of the human race from immeasurably large monsters with equally immeasurably large robots and all the contextual issues that come along with it.
I give this a 9/10 because this movie is exactly what it was meant to be and nothing more. I would have given it a 10/10 only if the acting was better and the story was legitimately good but my opinion of what a good story is is pretty high.
Thank you Guileermo Del Toro for giving me a nostalgic experience on the big screen.